For some it is work commitments or maybe it’s poor health or financial reasons. For others, it’s the choices they make in life that cost them time away from loved ones.
At the Northeast Nova Scotia Correctional Facility, life goes on at a normal pace during the holiday season, but the Christmas season is not forgotten.
The daily schedules in the correctional facility go along uninterrupted, but the Christmas season is acknowledged with a few extras for offenders such as an increase in the number of free phone calls they are allowed to make and some interaction between offenders and offenders as well as staff that wouldn't normally take place throughout the rest of the year.
“As Christmas Day comes closer, the offenders get quieter because they realize they are away from family and other loved ones,” said Captain John Hawkins. “As the day approaches they take it in stride and support one another.”
On Christmas Day, a traditional meal is served, similar to what would be on their dinner plates at home and a small bag of snack items is handed out in the day. On Christmas Eve night, offenders are able to enjoy sub sandwiches.
Since the majority of the offenders have a Christian background, the facility’s chaplain services held a Christmas Day service on Dec. 23. Advent services were held since the last week of November and ceremonies of different faiths would be held if requested.
Offenders and staff of the NENSCF have also reached out to the local community. A food drive was started a while ago by corrections staff and recently donated 351 pounds of food to the local food bank.
Staff were also approached by a few offenders who wanted to wanted to raise money for children in need during the holiday season.
“A lot of them struggled growing up and they appreciated a gift, so they proposed that they donate money from their canteen accounts and they challenged the staff to contribute as well,” said Vanessa Ellis, a case worker at NENSCF.
This raised a total of $734 that provided Christmas gifts to 14 children with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Pictou County.
“A few of the staff went out and purchased Christmas gifts and the two offenders who took an active role in the activities wrapped a lot of the gifts,” she said.
Eight offenders took part in the prison fellowship “Angel Tree” program that provides gifts to children of offenders. Eleven children, ages three to 15, received gifts, this year from offenders within the NENSCF.
Offenders also approached staff about helping out a young girl who was badly burned in a house fire in New York and lost her father and three siblings. They had seen her story on the news and wanted to respond to plea for enough holiday cards to fill up her Christmas tree.
Some of the offenders made her homemade cards while others signed their names to some and they were all recently mailed to New York.
Homemade holiday cards, made in the facility’s art program, were also delivered to Valley View Villa to residents there who do get a lot of mail this time of year.
Riverview Home
RIVERTON – When the residents of the Riverview Home sit down for Christmas dinner Friday, there had better be a turkey leg on Alice Parker’s plate.
Sandra Cyr, a baker at the home, said they don’t get many special requests for meals at the home, but this one in particular was made known a while ago.
“And Trish wants the other one,” she said with a laugh. “Vera wants lemon pie.”
Filling those orders won’t be difficult since the home will be cooking three turkeys and baking all kinds of treats and sweets for the staff, residents and their visitors. The 54 residents in the Riverview Home, had a full month of Christmas activities leading up to the big day Friday, which doesn’t include the extra goodies, meals and special Christmas celebrations taking place in the three neighbouring group homes.
Christmas shopping was done by early December and all of the presents are wrapped for the residents and tucked away safely and put under the trees by the nightshift so residents wake up to them Christmas morning.
Cyr said the kitchen will bring juice and muffins to each unit since the residents don’t want to leave their units and turkey dinner is served between 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. The residents guests are invited in join in for the complimentary turkey dinner as well.
“There is everything you would have at your house,” she said. “Special treats, squares, cookies, chips and dip, eggnog and a little bit of wine.”
For supper, the meal of the day will be turkey burgers and fries.
“A lot of planning goes into every day here, but at Christmas things are turned up a bit,” she said.
Aberdeen Hospital
Priscella Stewart is pretty pumped about working Christmas.
After 38 years of serving meals at the Aberdeen Hospital and working about half that many Christmases, Stewart has adopted a positive outlook on the day.
“It a little sad driving to work that morning but once you get here and get into the swing of things, it’s a fun day,” she said. “No one likes being away from their family at Christmas time but once you get here we laugh and sing because we are like family.”
Staff are served a free turkey dinner from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and the patients get a traditional turkey meal as well as some extra treats on their trays as well as Christmas craft from the ladies auxiliary. About 75 staff will probably dine as well as 50 or 60 patients who were unable to make it home for the holidays.
“There aren’t a lot of leftovers around because things are cleaned up pretty good,” she said.
Twenty-one-year-old Ashley Elliott will be spending her first Christmas away from home this year. She is a newly graduated nurse working at the Aberdeen Hospital who isn’t sure what to expect when she works her 12-hour shift Friday.
“I didn’t volunteer to work it but I am low man on the totem pole so I kind of expected it,” she said. “It was either Christmas or New Year’s. I don’t mind because I’d rather for the people with children to be home.”
She said she expects there to be lots of family and visitors to the hospital that day and hopes the mood is upbeat.
Elliott said her Christmas will take place on Dec. 28 when she travels home to be with her family, who have promised not to start the festivities without her.
For some it is work commitments or maybe it’s poor health or financial reasons. For others, it’s the choices they make in life that cost them time away from loved ones.
At the Northeast Nova Scotia Correctional Facility, life goes on at a normal pace during the holiday season, but the Christmas season is not forgotten.
The daily schedules in the correctional facility go along uninterrupted, but the Christmas season is acknowledged with a few extras for offenders such as an increase in the number of free phone calls they are allowed to make and some interaction between offenders and offenders as well as staff that wouldn't normally take place throughout the rest of the year.
“As Christmas Day comes closer, the offenders get quieter because they realize they are away from family and other loved ones,” said Captain John Hawkins. “As the day approaches they take it in stride and support one another.”
On Christmas Day, a traditional meal is served, similar to what would be on their dinner plates at home and a small bag of snack items is handed out in the day. On Christmas Eve night, offenders are able to enjoy sub sandwiches.
Since the majority of the offenders have a Christian background, the facility’s chaplain services held a Christmas Day service on Dec. 23. Advent services were held since the last week of November and ceremonies of different faiths would be held if requested.
Offenders and staff of the NENSCF have also reached out to the local community. A food drive was started a while ago by corrections staff and recently donated 351 pounds of food to the local food bank.
Staff were also approached by a few offenders who wanted to wanted to raise money for children in need during the holiday season.
“A lot of them struggled growing up and they appreciated a gift, so they proposed that they donate money from their canteen accounts and they challenged the staff to contribute as well,” said Vanessa Ellis, a case worker at NENSCF.
This raised a total of $734 that provided Christmas gifts to 14 children with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Pictou County.
“A few of the staff went out and purchased Christmas gifts and the two offenders who took an active role in the activities wrapped a lot of the gifts,” she said.
Eight offenders took part in the prison fellowship “Angel Tree” program that provides gifts to children of offenders. Eleven children, ages three to 15, received gifts, this year from offenders within the NENSCF.
Offenders also approached staff about helping out a young girl who was badly burned in a house fire in New York and lost her father and three siblings. They had seen her story on the news and wanted to respond to plea for enough holiday cards to fill up her Christmas tree.
Some of the offenders made her homemade cards while others signed their names to some and they were all recently mailed to New York.
Homemade holiday cards, made in the facility’s art program, were also delivered to Valley View Villa to residents there who do get a lot of mail this time of year.
Riverview Home
RIVERTON – When the residents of the Riverview Home sit down for Christmas dinner Friday, there had better be a turkey leg on Alice Parker’s plate.
Sandra Cyr, a baker at the home, said they don’t get many special requests for meals at the home, but this one in particular was made known a while ago.
“And Trish wants the other one,” she said with a laugh. “Vera wants lemon pie.”
Filling those orders won’t be difficult since the home will be cooking three turkeys and baking all kinds of treats and sweets for the staff, residents and their visitors. The 54 residents in the Riverview Home, had a full month of Christmas activities leading up to the big day Friday, which doesn’t include the extra goodies, meals and special Christmas celebrations taking place in the three neighbouring group homes.
Christmas shopping was done by early December and all of the presents are wrapped for the residents and tucked away safely and put under the trees by the nightshift so residents wake up to them Christmas morning.
Cyr said the kitchen will bring juice and muffins to each unit since the residents don’t want to leave their units and turkey dinner is served between 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. The residents guests are invited in join in for the complimentary turkey dinner as well.
“There is everything you would have at your house,” she said. “Special treats, squares, cookies, chips and dip, eggnog and a little bit of wine.”
For supper, the meal of the day will be turkey burgers and fries.
“A lot of planning goes into every day here, but at Christmas things are turned up a bit,” she said.
Aberdeen Hospital
Priscella Stewart is pretty pumped about working Christmas.
After 38 years of serving meals at the Aberdeen Hospital and working about half that many Christmases, Stewart has adopted a positive outlook on the day.
“It a little sad driving to work that morning but once you get here and get into the swing of things, it’s a fun day,” she said. “No one likes being away from their family at Christmas time but once you get here we laugh and sing because we are like family.”
Staff are served a free turkey dinner from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and the patients get a traditional turkey meal as well as some extra treats on their trays as well as Christmas craft from the ladies auxiliary. About 75 staff will probably dine as well as 50 or 60 patients who were unable to make it home for the holidays.
“There aren’t a lot of leftovers around because things are cleaned up pretty good,” she said.
Twenty-one-year-old Ashley Elliott will be spending her first Christmas away from home this year. She is a newly graduated nurse working at the Aberdeen Hospital who isn’t sure what to expect when she works her 12-hour shift Friday.
“I didn’t volunteer to work it but I am low man on the totem pole so I kind of expected it,” she said. “It was either Christmas or New Year’s. I don’t mind because I’d rather for the people with children to be home.”
She said she expects there to be lots of family and visitors to the hospital that day and hopes the mood is upbeat.
Elliott said her Christmas will take place on Dec. 28 when she travels home to be with her family, who have promised not to start the festivities without her.
